The present invention relates generally to aircraft landing gear assemblies, and more particularly to a landing gear assembly which provides improved tire service life.
Upon touchdown the tires of an aircraft are subjected to the imposition of a heavy load simultaneously with a sudden acceleration to the landing speed of the aircraft as the tires come into frictional engagement with the runway surface. As a result, the useful life of aircraft tires has been undesirably short, resulting in the need to frequently replace such tires with an attendant increase in operating costs.
While various arrangements have been proposed for reducing the weight and acceleration burdens on the tires by rotating the tires during the final phases of landing, including the provision of air vanes or electric or hydraulic motors in the wheel hubs, these arrangements have not proved satisfactory. Thus, the need has remained for a landing gear assembly wherein the life of aircraft tires is improved without undue complication or weight increases.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved landing gear assembly.
It is a more specific object of the present invention to provide a landing gear assembly which provides tire service life.